Why America needs Obama in its fight against terror
WITH Barrack Obama at the helm of USA, the global atmosphere, especially on terrorism and foreign policy front, is bound to change. In some cases, there would be several paradigm shifts across the world. Obama's inaugural speech, recent statements, as well as his first interview with an Arabian TV channel bears testimony to that. The most noteworthy sentences, among others, that Obama said in his inaugural speech is: "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers." Unfortunately, he has been severely criticized for pairing Muslims with Christians. Traditionally, Jews are actually paired with Christians. The coinage of Obama's words, they say, has disturbed many anti-Obama analysts across the world. The hardline critics have started suspecting Obama as pro-Islamic for his softer stance towards Muslims. The new US president has also hinted an end to the previous administration's favourite coinage "war on terror." He has also been criticized for this. But the US editorialists themselves said this position is meant for healing American reputation abroad as well as when he ordered the Guantanamo Bay prison to close. Obama's order to close the detention facility within a year, end coercive interrogations and shut secret overseas CIA prisons sent a strong signal to the world and presented a new post-September 11 era. Bringing an end to war on terror was a broad swipe at the Bush administration and its supporters. President Obama has given his first interview to an Arab TV channel. This has also disturbed the hardliners. He said: "My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy. We sometimes make mistakes. We have not been perfect. But if you look at the track record, as you say, America was not born as a colonial power, and that the same respect and partnership that America had with the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago, there's no reason why we can't restore that. And that I think is going to be an important task." What Barrack Obama is doing is that he has started projecting a humble America before the world. For example, he said in his interview: "All too often the United States starts by dictating." He has suggested his special envoy to the Middle East for "listening" to what the Arab world has to say. Obama has also apologized for President Bush's "Islamic fascism" terminology, when he said: "The language we use matters. And what we need to understand is, is that there are extremist organizations - whether Muslim or any other faith in the past - that will use faith as a justification for violence. We cannot paint with a broad brush a faith as a consequence of the violence that is done in that faith's name." There was no call for the Muslim world to actively fight terrorism -- honesty is the hallmark of the Obama administration's policy." Now do all these show that Obama is giving up on the war on terrorism as the sceptics are saying? The sceptics would be very wrong if they think so. Obama may have started to change the terminology, but fight against terror and terrorist organizations and individuals would continue. Even if the new administration is making sweeping legal changes in its approach to counter-terrorism there are few indications that it will adopt a different military approach, particularly when it comes to confronting Al-Qa'eda suspects. After all, using language reminiscent of his predecessor, Obama did say: "Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred." What the new president is doing is trying to improve America's image across the world. If anyone assesses US image very carefully and honestly (without any sort of arrogance), one would find America's image is at its lowest level not only in the Muslim-majority countries, but also in other countries, except for USA itself and Israel. America badly needs to improve its image in order to sustain as the global superpower as well as the vanguard nation in the fight against terrorism. It's worthwhile mentioning something about America's staunchest ally, the United Kingdom. The British foreign secretary, David Miliband, recently in Mumbai, argued that the use of the "war on terror" as a western rallying cry since the September 11 attacks has been a mistake that may have caused "more harm than good". Miliband delivers this comprehensive critique, saying the war on terror was misconceived and that the west cannot "kill its way" out of the threats it faces. British officials have quietly stopped using the phrase "war on terror" in 2006, but this was the first time it has been comprehensively discarded in the most outspoken remarks on US counter-terrorism strategy to date by a British minister. "Historians will judge whether it has done more harm than good," Miliband said, adding that, in his opinion, the whole strategy has been dangerously counterproductive, helping otherwise disparate groups find common cause against the west. In its post-9/11 craze to defuse terrorism and terrorist groups across the world, America failed to realize how aggressive it had become, especially while dealing with the Muslim population in the world. The Muslim population, possibly every country, cried their heart out not to equate terrorism with Muslims. There have been millions of statements urging to realize who the real terrorists are. Muslims have been pointing out that Al-Qa'eda network, which believes in destruction, is not Islamic. Something that believes so much in death and destruction cannot be followers of Muslim ideals and values. US administration as well as its secret organizations such as CIA, FBI, Homeland Security etc., have never paid any heed to the call of Muslim population. The Muslims across the world had become subject to various kinds of hostilities from the US-led activities. No one should deny that America needs a facelift in its image among the global population. No one should deny that they need to re-evaluate their policy on "war on terror" which has turned out to be a "war on Muslims". No one should deny that Muslims have faced hostilities from the US-driven activities and policies. Now it is time for America to get its image back. President Obama is trying exactly that. The whole world admits that USA is the most powerful nation on earth and also wants to see this nation survive as a powerful state. But if America fails in its behaviour to prove it is becoming more arrogant with its power, it would commit the fatal mistake of turning the wheel of power to some other state. And Barrack Obama realises that. He is trying to project a human face of America because humanity matters more than military might. The post-9/11 administration has done a huge harm to that country without even realising it. The new US president realises that Muslim world both in America and across the world matters. He realises that the gap that has been created between America and the Muslim population would have to be bridged. And so far he has shown that attitude perfectly. His critics should encourage his objective to bridge this gap earnestly. They [critics] shouldn't feel complacent, thinking that US previous policy of using force would work in the future. The author is a freelancer.
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